The Line Tender

Content Warning: This section of the guide discusses the death of a parent and the death of a child.

In The Line Tender, sharks are a symbol of the unknown. Helen remarks in her interview that humans fear sharks because they don’t understand much about them. This holds true for Lucy at the beginning of the novel since she doesn’t want to spend much time around the shark that Sookie caught because it makes her uncomfortable. Similarly, the general population of the town sees the resurgence of the great white shark population as cause for alarm, yet scientists like Helen embrace the rise in shark population because it signals growth. This symbolizes that the unknown causes most people anxiety, but when people embrace the unknown, they often experience personal growth. The characters in The Line Tender who are least afraid of the unknown—Fred, Helen, Vern, and Dr. Robin—are also the characters who are the most curious about sharks. As Lucy becomes more comfortable with the unknown, she also becomes more interested in the shark population. This culminates in the final scene of the novel, where Lucy tags living sharks out on the ocean, demonstrating her character growth.